Graceful, or, three times Bella goes ice skating
by Erin87
Summary: The title is pretty self explanatory. Takes place both before and after Bella is changed. My first Twilight fic, so please R&R!


A.N. Okay, this is my first Twilight fanfic. It was originally written as a Christmas present for an obsessed friend of mine, so I hope you all enjoy it as much as she did! : )

(Just a note: it switches somewhere in the middle to after Bella is changed. I'm just saying this to avoid any confusion!)

"No way. Absolutely not." I crossed my arms over my chest, both to show my defiance of his plans and to keep out the frigid outdoor air. I was standing by a frozen pond in the middle of the forest, snow piled up to my ankles, feeling like an idiot. The fact that I had been dragged to this god-forsaken spot against my will was very little consolation.

"Come on, Bella," he begged. I glared at him, refusing to allow myself to be persuaded by the lilting, musical tones of his voice. "It'll be fun." He held out the ridiculous pair of white ice skates he had bought me.

"Edward," I said, very slowly, "This is me we're talking about. Ice and I have never mixed very well, and you want to add sharp metal blades into the equation? Have you gone completely crazy?"

He grinned deviously, a gleam in his golden eyes. "I'll admit, there's a certain amount of fate tempting involved."

I didn't dignify that with an answer, instead looking away from his perfect features and at the snow frosted landscape surrounding us. I didn't trust myself to maintain any trace of my pride and independence while he had that look on his face. It was an isolated spot halfway up a mountain, at least five miles of untouched wilderness stretching away in every direction. The pond was in the middle of a clearing surrounded by trees, every limb blanketed in a layer of pure white snow, the only sounds my breathing and the rasp of Edward's skates on the ice. It was all very pretty and serene. But my enjoyment of the scenery was spoiled by my vampire boyfriend's sudden insistence that I kill myself by attempting to ice skate.

I risked a quick glance in his direction. I shouldn't have. He was smiling crookedly at me, looking very amused. I couldn't help but stare at him. His smile grew wider when he noticed my absorption. "Bella," he said, saying my name as if it were the key to the world's greatest treasures. He lifted his eyebrows and held out the skates again. "Please?" he said in his smoothest, most pleading voice.

Unable to help myself, I reached out and took the skates from him, mentally kicking myself for my weakness, and sat down on a convenient large rock to put them on. As I took off my nice, sturdy, warm boots and slid my feet into the cold leather, I couldn't help but remember the first and only time I had ever attempted to ice skate.

I was twelve years old, and my mom had decided that, in order to fully get into the Christmas spirit that year, we would go ice skating. She had completely ignored my attempts to reason with her and my many reminders of my nearly incapacitating clumsiness. She was in one of her stubborn moods, and dead set on us participating in this traditional seasonal pastime, refusing to take any sort of no for an answer. And so, one Saturday, I was stuffed into a never used winter coat and bundled off to Phoenix's indoor skating rink for several hours of "quality holiday fun".

Needless to say, the experience didn't remotely approach anywhere "fun". The place was crowded, noisy, and I fell down more times than I could possibly count, half the time dragging my mother down with me, as well as the occasional innocent bystander. By the time we had been there half an hour, people had learned to keep their distance, staying at least eight feet away at all times. The torture continued until I fell for probably the hundredth time and nearly sliced my leg open with the blade of my skates. Seeing the six inch slash in the fabric of my pants had finally convinced Mom that it was time to go home. The bruises from that incident took a month to disappear.

I finished lacing up the skates, jerking on the knot to make sure it was secure, and set aside my boots in a neat pile next to the rock. I looked down at my feet and the spotless white boots they were now wearing. I had to admit that they were well made. I turned my heel to glance at the brand name and swallowed anxiously. They carried this brand of skates at the Newton's store, and the cheapest pair they sold was well over two hundred dollars.

I turned to reprimand Edward for buying me such expensive skates, but when I saw him I forgot everything I had been about to say. I had never seen anything so... so graceful in my entire life. He was gliding effortlessly along the ice, every turn sharp and precise and flawlessly executed. The snow covered trees framed off my view of the pond, providing the perfect stage for this symphony of motion. I was struck dumb by the perfect beauty of his movements and the way he looked, his bronze hair waving in the gentle breeze he created as he skimmed over the ice. Words cannot hope to fully describe the absolute magic I felt just watching him skate.

He looked in my direction and smiled exquisitely before coasting over to the edge of the pond. "Ready?" he asked cheerfully. I collected the scattered pieces of my thoughts and managed to scowl at him.

"Sure I'm ready," I said sarcastically. "Because suicide by winter sports has always appealed to me."

He rolled his eyes and stepped off the ice. Walking as normally as if the black skates he wore were sneakers, he planted himself in front of me and held out a hand. "Bella," he said seriously, "you have my solemn promise. I will not let you hurt yourself today." I looked up into the honey-gold warmth of his eyes, once again enveloped in the familiar feeling of perfect safety. At that moment, he could have asked me to jump out of a plane with no parachute and I would have done it without a moment's hesitation.

I took Edward's pale hand and he pulled me to my feet. I immediately started wobbling on the thin blades, but he caught my arm and steadied me. Very cautiously, I turned and began to inch towards the pond, gripping his arm in a stranglehold that would have caused bruises on someone more human. Concentrating on my miniscule steps, I wasn't expecting it when he scooped me up into his arms with a sigh and began carrying me. I gave a small yelp of surprise and glowered at him. "I was doing it on my own," I said indignantly.

"Yes, but at the rate you were going it would have taken you all day just to walk three feet."

I opened my mouth to argue the point, but gave in when I realized he was probably right, so I simply relaxed, luxuriating in the feel of his stone hard arms around me. I felt it when Edward stepped onto the ice, but I paid it no mind, completely happy where I was, until he swung me down and set me lightly on my feet, keeping a tight grip on both my arms. I gave him a slightly pouty look.

"You think it took me forever on solid ground?" I complained, trying to get him to pick me up again. "Imagine what it's going to be like on a slippery surface. Twice as slow. That's barely moving."

"No," he said, "that's the whole point. It's twice as fast." Moving one arm at a time, he let go of my shoulders and took hold of my gloved hands. "Have you ever done this before?"

Knowing me as well as he did, he looked surprised when I nodded. "Sort of," I said, cringing at the memory for the second time that day. "At least, in theory I know how it's supposed to work."

"Okay then. Are you ready?" he asked pointlessly. He grinned when I glared at him. "Right," he said. "Never mind." He edged backwards, widening the space between us. "Here we go. Remember, just push off with one foot and then the other." He very slowly began to skate backwards, letting our linked arms stretch out, giving me room to move.

I tentatively slid my right skate forward and winced reflexively before I realized I was still upright. I took a deep breath, encouraged by my success so far, and pushed off, bringing up my left foot to join the other one. My triumph was short lived. I slipped and pitched forward, shutting my eyes in expectation of the collision to come. It never did. At least, not the one I had been anticipating.

I did crash into something hard though. It took me a moment to grasp the fact that I was still vertical, and I opened my eyes, my vision filled with an expanse of dark blue fabric. Edward's shirt. The second I had begun falling, he had pulled on my arms, sliding me towards him and catching me long before I hit the ice. I looked up at his face. He was smiling angelically. "I told you I wouldn't let you fall." I couldn't help but smile back.

Seemingly reluctantly, he separated us and took up his grip on my hands again. "If at first you don't succeed..."

"...fail, fail again," I muttered quietly. Of course, he heard me and grinned as he moved backwards for the second time. The whole thing happened much as it did before, with me falling after only a few steps. But this time, I didn't stop when I reached Edward's arms. To my utter surprise, I kept moving forwards. "Just keep your feet together," I heard him say in my ear. He kept one arm wrapped tightly around my waist, the other reaching upwards to take my left hand from where it was clinging to his shoulder, skating the whole while. We glided around the pond, gracefully, fluidly. I just stood still as Edward towed me around with him in a perfect imitation of a waltz.

It was like flying. I felt a smile spread over my face as I marveled at the speed and smoothness of our journey over the ice. Edward glanced at my joyous expression and smiled radiantly, then began to softly hum my lullaby, his rich, lovely voice the perfect accompaniment to our ice waltz.

The only other sound amid the snowy hush was the scrape of our skates as we skid over the surface of the ice. I laid my head on Edward's shoulder and decided that maybe ice skating wasn't so bad after all.

*O*

I laughed. I loved ice skating! I flew across the ice at a breakneck pace, looking over my shoulder to see if Edward had caught up yet. He was right behind me, only a few feet away. I went even faster, swerving to avoid getting in the way of Emmett and Rosalie's hockey game. They were facing each other off, about to engage in furious battle for the small black puck sitting on the ice between them. I glanced around to look for my husband. He was gone.

I turned to face ahead of me again and was forced to skid to a complete and sudden stop, spraying ice chips as the blades cut deep into the smooth surface. The figure blocking my path grinned beautifully, his hands stuck casually in his pockets. "Got you," he said, sounding extremely pleased with himself.

I grinned back. "Not yet you don't." I glided away, zooming past Carlisle and Esme, who were skating around the lake arm in arm, the picture of old fashioned elegance. Esme laughed, reveling in her 'children's' exuberance. I dashed around the frozen lake, weaving through Alice and Jasper's intricate display of ice dancing. Alice was wearing a knee-length ice blue dress trimmed in white fur, looking every inch the winter princess as she spun and twirled, twenty times more graceful than any Olympic figure skater. She giggled as I flew past her, the gust of air caused by my passing making the short spikes of her black hair bend sharply. "Watch it Bella!" she laughed.

I looked over my shoulder. Edward was closing in again. I headed over to where Reneesmee was skating with Jacob. She was laughing at him as he slid over the ice, one of his four paws slipping out from beneath him occasionally. He had started out in skates like the rest of us, but had quickly given up, deciding that he would fair better if he phased out and used his claws. My daughter was gleefully skating around the large russet wolf, making little figure eight patterns as she circled him delicately. I swept around her and, in a flash, gathered her up in my arms, spinning her around and making her laugh joyfully.

Then, as quickly as I had picked her up, she was gone from my grasp. Edward glided past me, holding Nessie. She laughed again, her beautiful little face lighting up as her father whirled her in a tight circle. I smiled at my family, basking in the warmth caused by the deep love I felt for them. I coasted over to my husband and daughter. Edward beamed at me, love pouring from his amber eyes. "So I guess you do like ice skating after all," he said jokingly. "Admit it."

I grinned at him. "Only if you can catch me," I challenged, and skated away, watching him over my shoulder. A spark entered his eyes and a determined grin spread across his flawless face. I laughed as he set Nessie down and launched himself after me, leaving a streak of inch deep grooves in the blue ice behind him.

A.N.2: Thanks for reading! Please review and tell me what you think! Comments are much appreciated!


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